Days 5-8: Rio de Janiero!!!

Apologies for not posting in a few days, we've been quite busy! Anddddd there's been little to no wifi in Manaus for me to post this really long recap. Can you make it to the end?

For our first day in Rio, we slept in a bit (especially considering Daniel and I flew in from Natal at 6am). Then it was time for a Praia de Copacabana!  The beach was fabulous and we obviously stood out as tourists from the way all the vendors flocked to our place in the sand. It's like there was a flashing sign that said "GRINGAS!" But of course we also didn't help things by proceeding to buy all the things. 

After the beach we went to grab lunch at a middle eastern buffet place that had the very original name of "Arab". It was delicious and I ate tons of food that I have no idea what it was, but hey, c'est la vie. 

After that it was back to the beach because it was time for brazil to play! And let me tell you, I think the whole city of Rio turned out to watch at Copacabana. Larry even made me get on his shoulders so I could get a picture of one huge group that was by one of the screens. Then we walked to the official fanfest and it was so full they weren't letting any other people in. Which meant we joined the thousands of people watching next to the fan fest. Davina and I let Larry wander up close but we decided to sit a little further back on my conga (gift from Alana!). 

Davina and I must have looked a little more like we fit in because the vendors weren't approaching us and just moving on by. And then, I guess because we were wearing brazil jerseys that we bought in São Paulo, some people even came up and asked if they could get our pictures. Yay! We fit in! Maybe. 

On the second day we got up and got ready for our journey to the famed Maracana for the Spain vs Chile match. We got all decked out for Spain (except Larry who wanted to look somewhat neutral) and headed to the metro. And here's the biggest thing that captured my attention: SO MANY CHILEANS. They were literally everywhere. And singing and yelling nonstop. It was a cool experience although Pablo didn't appreciate it much, being from Spain. 

The game itself was pretty fantastic and the Maracana totally lived up to its hype. Spain definitely had their chances but just underwhelmed in the pressured atmosphere. 

After the game, we had some food therapy in the form if one of the first churrascarias in Rio, Porcao Rio! To help set the stage here... It's all you can eat, all cuts of meat, and all sorts of sides. Basically I'm foreshadowing the inevitable food baby. It was DELICIOUS. I had so much food and tried all the different meats, even the chicken hearts, although I'd had them before. Add in some caipirinha and it was heaven. 

The next day we decided to go on a hike that one of Larry's friends recommended and let me tell you, it was an adventure. We had to take a taxi to the trailhead and got pointed in the direction of it. However, it still wasn't very clear, so we had to ask one of the locals if it was right. Turns out it was so up we went!

It was a somewhat difficult hike because of all the rain from the night before and the rain that was still falling. It was pretty steep but worth it for the views we got from the breaks in the trees. Eventually we got to the top but just in time for the clouds to block our views of Ipanema and Rio. But oh well, totally worth the hike. And we got to stand in a cloud! 

Next came the hard part, getting down the mountain. Especially since it decided to downpour. But we're made it! Just looked like drowned rats when we made it to the bottom. All in all, a good experience!

After the hike, we decided to get some grub and then shower and put on dry clothes. And then we got ready for a night on the town in Rio! 

We decided, based on recommendations, to go out in Lapa, one of the nightlife districts. This was a good decision and apparently tons of others also had the same good decision. The club we went to, Rio Scenarium, was pretty cool and had multiple floors with different types of music. However, based on the line we waited in, the proportion of men to woman was not equal. In fact, it wasn't even close. The number of males easily outweighed the number of females. No complaints, though. We ended up staying out until around 3:30am so had a very successful night at the club.

The next morning we were woken up bright and early by Pablo because it was time to see Christ the Redeemer! And we owe Pablo a lot for doing that since there was essentially no line when we arrived and the line was astronomical when we left. (Hint: if you go, get there by 9am).

The ride up to the statue was interesting. We essentially took three buses: one to buy the bus ticket, one to get to where you could buy tickets for the statue, and then a bus up to the statue. Efficient? I think not, but it worked. And so worth it. The views from the statue were incredible! It was 360 views of the city and while it got cloudy for a bit, there was plenty of time to snap some birds eye view shots of the Ipanema, the Maracana, the mountain we climbed the day before, etc. There were also so many people! And so many nationalities! It was a cool, if crowded, experience.

We're finding that we aren't doing too many touristy things since soccer or futebol (pronounced foo-chee-bol) is the main attraction. Just means I'll have to come back and do all the touristy things another time :)

Pictures are in the process of being loaded so I'll post them separately and then, since we are now in Recife, I have drafted my blog for our time in Manaus and will try to get all caught up!